The present invention is directed to a ribbon-shaped transmission element comprising a plurality of optical fibers which are disposed side-by-side on a connecting layer, a cable having the element and a method of making the element.
A ribbon-shaped transmission element comprising a plurality of optical fibers is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,147,407. As disclosed in this patent, the fibers are each provided with a plastic coating. The coating of the individual optical fibers are in contact with one another so that a ribbon-shaped structure will occur. This, however, has the disadvantage that it cannot be bent or rolled or it can only be slightly bent or rolled at right angles to its longitudinal axis because inadmissible mechanical forces and deformations would otherwise be directly transmitted via the coating onto the inwardly disposed optical fibers.
A ribbon-shaped transmission element is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,883,218. The ribbon-shaped transmission element has optical fibers composed of a core and jacket material which are disposed side-by-side with spacings therebetween on a thin paper tape. In order to secure the optical fibers in their position, an adhesive layer is provided on the paper tape with the fibers resting on this adhesive layer. Such an arrangement has the disadvantage that an additional bonding material must be applied to the connecting film which is in the form of a paper tape. In addition, it is difficult given thin layers of the bonding material to secure the optical fibers in a sufficiently good fashion. A further disadvantage of this arrangement is that the optical fibers with their coatings must be held to the relatively thick tape-shaped connecting foil via the bonding material.